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U.S. President Joe Biden said on Saturday that he aimed to “strengthen the strategic partnership” with Saudi Arabia during next week’s controversial visit to Saudi Arabia, but added that he would uphold “fundamental American values.”
“I know a lot of people disagree with my decision to travel to Saudi Arabia. My views on human rights are clear and long-term, and when I travel abroad, basic freedoms are always on the agenda, like this trip” Biden wrote in a Washington Post opinion piece published Saturday.
While Biden is expected to urge Saudi Arabia to increase oil production in hopes of curbing rising fuel costs and inflation at home, his visit marks a shift: an apparent abandonment of the rejection of Saudi de facto leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman efforts, the horrific murder of dissidents.
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As a presidential candidate, Biden said the murder and dismemberment of Jamal Khashoggi in 2018 made the country “untouchable.”
U.S. intelligence findings released by the Biden administration identified bin Salman, commonly known as MBS, as the mastermind behind the operation.
Last month, Biden tried to distance himself from the upcoming meeting, stressing to reporters that he would meet King Salman and his team.
But the White House confirmed earlier this week that he would meet with MBS during the visit.
“As president, my job is to keep our country strong and secure,” the U.S. leader wrote in The Washington Post on Saturday.
He continued: “We must counter Russian aggression, put ourselves in the best position to surpass China and work for greater stability in important parts of the world.”
“To do this, we have to engage directly with countries that can influence these outcomes. Saudi Arabia is one of them, and when I meet with Saudi leaders on Friday, my goal is to strengthen the future strategic partnership, the partnership Based on shared interests and responsibilities, while also staying true to fundamental American values.”
Biden will also visit Israel and the West Bank during his July 13-16 trip, which he wrote will “open a new and more promising chapter in American engagement in the Middle East.”
He said the region was “more stable and secure” than when he took over as US president in January 2021, especially with the recent thawing of ties between Israel and some Arab states.
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“These are promising trends that the U.S. can strengthen in ways no other country can,” Biden said.
He also touched on the Iran nuclear deal, agreed with world powers in 2015 but abandoned by his predecessor Donald Trump three years later.
“My administration will continue to ramp up diplomatic and economic pressure until Iran is ready to return to compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal, and I remain prepared to do so,” Biden wrote.
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